DESTINATION NORTHERN MARIANA ISLANDS

Environment

Saipan, the largest island, is a mere 47 sq mi (120 sq km); the smallest is Farallon de Medinilla, at less than half a square mile. (North Maug Island is smaller still, though it's usually counted together with its two neighbors as one island; all three are the tips of a partially submerged volcano.) Most of the islands are actually the tips of volcanoes, some of which are still active. Pagan, about 350 miles (565km) north of Saipan, erupted in 1984 and 1988. There are also occasional earthquakes, like the one that rocked Anatahan in 1990, measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale. Pagan's neighbor to the north, Agrihan, has the highest point in Micronesia, at 3165ft (965m). Most of the islands north of Saipan are part of the Northern Islands Sanctuary, uninhabited save for game wardens and the flora and fauna they preserve.

The coconut palm tree is the most important plant in the islands. Copra, the dried meat of the nut from which coconut oil is made, is the commonwealth's most important export and a major source of revenue for many residents. The nut also provides food and drinking liquid, while the flowers provide sap for making a wine called tuba. Rope is made from the green coconut husks, and fuel and charcoal are made from mature husks. The wood is used for lumber and carving, the fronds for thatch and baskets. The islands' other main tree is the flame tree, which has scarlet blossoms. You'll also see coleus, caladium and philodendron.

The only land mammals native to the islands are bats, though they've all but disappeared due to their popularity in Chamorro cuisine. Animals that have been introduced include dogs, cats, mice, rats, pigs, cattle, horses and goats. There are also Sambar deer on Rota and Saipan. Several lizards are native to the Marianas, such as skinks and geckoes, which stroll on walls and ceilings with suction-cup feet. Among the bird species found in the Marianas are the rufous fantail, the beautifully plumed golden honeyeater, the fairy tern and the Vanikoro swiftlet (an endangered bird). Out in the water is a wide range of hard and soft corals, anemones, sponges and many varieties of shellfish, including the giant tridacna clam. Sea cucumbers, which when dried and smoked are considered an aphrodisiac in China and South-East Asia, commonly dot the shallow waters near shore. Porpoises, sperm whales and beaked whales can also be found in the local waters.

Saipan, listed in the Guinness Book of World Records as having the world's most equable temperature, averages 81°F (27°C) all year. The rainy season is from July to October. The Marianas are directly in the path of typhoons, which tend to sweep through from August to December. Such storms have become more frequent and destructive lately, so travellers should be aware of weather conditions in the islands if they plan to visit during these months.

History

Ferdinand Magellan named the islands the Islas de los Ladrones (Islands of Thieves) in 1521; they were renamed Las Marianas upon the arrival of Spanish priest Luis Diego Sanvitores, in honor of the Spanish queen Maria Ana of Austria. In 1668 Sanvitores and five other Jesuits established the first mission in the Marianas, touching off two decades of hostilities between the priests and less-than-welcoming Chamorros. Spanish troops managed to quell the uprising in the late 1680s.

In the hopes of more effectively converting the Chamorros, the Spanish relocated most of them to Guam. Most of the natives on Rota, however, managed to hide out in the hills and avoid capture, and today the Chamorros on Rota are the least mixed in the Marianas. Around 1820 the Spanish allowed islanders from the western Carolines to move to the larger Mariana Islands. The Carolinians managed Spanish cattle herds and maintained a presence in the Marianas at a time when Spain was concerned over German intentions in the area.

After Pope Leo XIII declared Spain's sovereignty over the Marianas in 1885, the now Hispanicized Chamorros were encouraged to move back to the Northern Marianas from Guam. They were given farmland, but by that time the Carolinians had already settled much of the best coastal land. Germany bought the Northern Marianas from Spain in 1899, hoping to develop copra production. But German control only lasted until WWI, when Japan took over. The Japanese were more interested in sugar cane than copra, and they cleared groves of coconut palms and tropical forests to create more farmland, often removing ancient latte stones. By the mid-1930s, sugar cane operations in the Marianas were providing the Japanese with 60% of all revenues generated in Micronesia.

When the Japanese first arrived, there were about 4000 Chamorros in the Marianas; on the eve of WWII there were over 45,000 Japanese and immigrant workers there, dwarfing the indigenous population and overwhelming the native culture. But the worst was yet to come: the Marianas were among the bloodiest battlegrounds of WWII. Closer to Japan than the rest of Micronesia, the Marianas were key to Japan's defensive perimeter and to the United States' Pacific strategy. In summer 1944, the US landed in Saipan with a huge invasion force and simultaneously attacked a nearby Japanese fleet. Suffering minor losses, the Americans wiped out most of the fleet, but fierce land battles resulted in hundreds of casualties. The Japanese - both military personnel and civilians - were decimated, with nearly 40,000 lives lost.

The US used Tinian to stage air raids on Japan, including the atomic bomb drops on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Bypassed by the US invasion forces, Rota came out of the war relatively unscathed; Saipan and Tinian, though, were devastated, as was the sugar cane industry. The United Nations made the Marianas a department of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in 1947 and gave the US exclusive rights to administer them and to establish and maintain military bases (and to prevent other countries from doing the same).

Rather than encourage economic development, the US administered the islands by providing handouts. In 1948, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) closed off half of Saipan to islanders and outsiders alike, using the northern part of the island for covert military maneuvers. In 1961 Saipan and Rota petitioned the US government to be integrated with Guam. The request was repeated nearly every year until 1969, when Guamians voted the idea down, in part because of the ill feelings some of them still felt toward those Saipanese who had acted as interpreters during Guam's occupation by the Japanese.

When the CIA moved out of Saipan in 1962, the Northern Marianas were finally opened to visitors. The following year, the Trust Territory headquarters was moved into the CIA's old offices on Saipan. The people of the Northern Marianas voted to become a US commonwealth in 1975, ensuring continued US economic support. In return, the US military got to lease nearly 30 sq mi (75 sq km) of land in the islands. Under the terms of the commonwealth agreement, the Northern Marianas retain the right to internal self-government, while the US retains control of foreign affairs. In 1986 a new commonwealth covenant became effective, granting islanders US citizenship.

Although the Marianas aren't directly in the typhoon belt, recent storms have caused serious damage. The worst was super typhoon Keith, which blew through in November 1997, causing widespread havoc but no death or injuries. The other disaster affecting the islands was the Asian economic crisis of the late 1990s, which caused a drastic dropoff in tourism and sent real estate prices plummeting.

Economic Profile

Culture

English is the official language, though Chamorro and Carolinian are the native tongues and are widely spoken. You'll hear Japanese in most hotels and some shops. Hafa adai is the traditional greeting, though the slang term howzit is becoming nearly as common.

The predominant religion of the Northern Marianas is Roman Catholic, especially among the Chamorros and Filipino immigrants. Most cultural activities center around the Catholic church and religious festivities, including annual fiestas in honor of each village's patron saint. There are also Baptist, Methodist, Mormon, Korean Presbyterian, Evangelical and Seventh-day Adventist churches.

Dance in the Marianas ranges from a Spanish-influenced cha-cha popular among the Chamorros to the 'stick dance,' a Carolinian import combining stick beating and foot shuffling.

Events

Other than that, most events and festivals are held on Saipan. There's a half marathon and a 10km fun run in late January. The Kintetsu Buffaloes, a pro baseball team from Japan, has it spring training during the first two weeks of February. The annual Micronesian Open Boardsailing Regatta and the Saipan Laguna Regatta are international windsurfing and Hobie Cat competitions held at Micro Beach in mid-February. Serious masochists swim, bike and run nearly 50 miles (80km) during the Tagaman Triathalon, held in mid-May.

The week-long Liberation Day Festival celebrates the American liberation of the islands and ends on 4 July, US Independence Day. Festivities include a beauty pageant, nightly entertainment, games and food booths. A fishing tournament is held in August, during the marlin season, and there's a 5 mile (8km) run up Mt Tagpochau on Thanksgiving in late November.

There's a fun run on Rota in late June and on Tinian in late September. Each island also hosts a cliff fishing competition, one on Labor Day weekend in early September (Rota) and the other in early November (Tinian).

Public Holidays
1 January - New Year's Day
9 January - Commonwealth Day
Third Monday in February - President's Day
24 March - Covenant Day
Easter Holidays - Good Friday
Last Monday in May - Memorial Day
4 July - US Independence Day
First Monday in September - Labor Day
Second Monday in October - Columbus Day
4 November - Citizenship Day
11 November - Veterans Day
Last Thursday in November - Thanksgiving Day
8 December - Constitution Day
25 December - Christmas Day

Facts for the Traveller

Money & Costs

Relative costs: